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[Hogwarts] Ch 198: Half Muggle, Half Wizard Life
🕑 Added 2025-09-07 15:57:22 +0000 UTC— — — — — —
Ever since they left the Granger house, Hermione hadn't stopped smiling.
Tom's new place was ridiculously close to hers.
Closer in a straight line than the distance between the Gryffindor common room and Slytherin's.
The only downside was that Tom got a little too "lively" during the holidays. Just like last year, he never stayed in Britain for very long.
Click—
Hermione unlocked the iron gate with the key she'd kept at her house so her dad could handle the movers and cleaning crew in advance.
The property covered nearly an acre—about four thousand square meters—with the house itself taking up six hundred. Counting the basement, there were five floors in total. Mr. Granger had gone for a very traditional European style: stately, old-fashioned, but tidy and consistent.
Tom didn't really care about aesthetics anyway. As long as it was comfortable, he was fine. Otherwise, he wouldn't have left everything to the Grangers to handle.
"I want this room! Tom, can we turn this into my bedroom?"
On the fourth floor, besides the massive master suite, there was a study, a cigar lounge, and a bar area. Daphne had her eye on the so-called cigar lounge, which was really just an entertainment room with a TV and game console—Mr. Granger obviously hadn't built Tom a smoking den.
"No way." Tom hadn't even spoken yet before Hermione jumped in. "Every room on the fourth floor has a purpose! There are plenty of guest bedrooms on the third floor—you don't need this one."
Daphne pouted. "But running up and down floors is such a pain. Wouldn't it be easier to just stay on the fourth floor?"
"You're too noisy, you'll disturb Tom."
Hermione was getting flustered. This was the only spare room upstairs. Tom needed the study, and she couldn't exactly move into the master bedroom, could she?
Astoria piped up timidly. "Sister… the room's pretty big. Maybe we could fit two beds in here?"
Hermione almost fainted on the spot. Great. Now the sisters were ganging up on her.
"Enough." Tom raised his hand, cutting off their chatter. "If you all want the fourth floor that badly, I'll just divide up the space and expand it. That way everyone gets a room. Stop bickering."
"Using an Extension Charm like that… isn't it illegal?" Hermione said worriedly.
"Illegal? Please." Daphne waved her off. "Those laws are just for show. As long as it's not a serious crime, nobody's going to bother the Greengrasses—or Tom."
Even Astoria, usually the well-behaved one, didn't seem to think her sister was wrong.
Hermione fell quiet. She wasn't naïve; she knew the truth. Ordinary people followed the laws to the letter. But in the upper circles, it was all about "using the laws."
Her family sat right at the top of ordinary society—but still far from the privilege Tom and Daphne were used to.
...
Next, they did a full walk-through of the house and garden. Nothing seemed out of place, and Tom was already sketching out plans for remodeling.
First step: space. Everyone thought it felt a bit small, so why not expand?
He doubled the fourth floor and carved out three large suites. He did the same with the second and third floors, not adding more rooms but making the existing ones larger.
At his current level, his Extension Charms would hold for decades without issue.
He left the first floor alone for now, since expanding too soon would make the space feel awkwardly empty. Better to wait until the furniture was in place—and, moving things around with a Levitation Charm was easy anyway.
"Daphne, tell your mum to connect the fireplace to the Floo Network."
"Umm... I'll go to the Ministry right now!" Daphne grabbed Astoria and headed for the door. Hermione, curious about the Ministry herself, decided to tag along.
Before leaving, though, Daphne summoned two house-elves to fetch spare furniture from her family's estate, set up the bedrooms, and note down anything the house was missing.
Tom could only shake his head. He really didn't want to mooch off her wealth, but when the little heiress showed up with resources ready to go, what could he do?
...
Once the girls were gone, he got back to work.
He laid protective charms around the property: Muggle-Repelling Charms to keep out clueless burglars, Confundus Charms so nosy neighbors couldn't peek over the fence, and stronger wards to hide the exact location of the house.
Not quite as ironclad as the Fidelius Charm, but much more convenient to use.
Then came the backyard. Tom wasn't planning to grow rare magical plants here, but he did want flowers and herbs that would purify the air and brighten the atmosphere.
"Wuu?"
With a flutter, Usaki flew out of his pocket, wide-eyed at her new surroundings.
"That's right," Tom said with a smile. "This is our home now. No nest for you, though—I know you don't like them."
Since the holiday was short, he hadn't brought the unicorn back with him.
Usaki curled around his neck like a scarf, perfectly content.
As a Rayquaza, she might belong to the skies, but she was still too small for outer space. For now, she preferred napping while soaking up Tom's warmth.
Compared to the start of the year, Usaki hadn't grown much. All the meteorite Tom had collected had long been eaten, so her growth now came naturally—and slowly.
That was why he planned to meet with Rosier in France. Without more materials, Usaki's growth would take far too long, and who knew when she'd finally be strong enough to help him.
---
On his way back from Diagon Alley, after picking up seeds for flowers and herbs, Tom found that Daphne and the others had already returned.
Connections made everything easier. His fireplace wasn't just hooked into the Floo Network—it had been given unusually high clearance.
Only a specially made Floo powder could access it, and the connection linked directly to the Greengrass estate. Traveling back and forth was going to be a lot more convenient.
The house-elves had finished setting up several bedrooms as well.
To celebrate the move, the group agreed on an outdoor barbecue. Once the elves had laid out the ingredients, they slipped away, leaving Tom and the girls to their "little world".
Hermione, who'd been taking cooking lessons from Hannah, showed off her progress. At the very least, Daphne was eating happily.
"Aahhh—so good!" Daphne tore into another lamb chop, her face lighting up with satisfaction.
"This place is even better than our house. Diagon Alley is just a walk away, and there are loads of Muggle shops nearby. Way more fun than what the wizarding world offers."
Astoria nodded eagerly. The street full of clothing stores had dazzled her; she wanted to step into every single one. Their own estate might've been larger, but it was far too empty, lacking the energy of real life.
Hermione sniffed. "Funny. Who was it, back at the start of term, that used to sneer at everything Muggle and pick fights with me every day?"
Daphne flushed scarlet. "Hermione! Don't bring up old stuff!"
She had been a diehard pure-blood supremacist. If Tom hadn't first stunned her with his looks, she'd never have gotten this far with him. But people changed. Once she'd stopped looking at the Muggle world through a tinted lens, she realized wizards were the backward ones.
In everyday lifestyle, Muggles were way ahead. Combining the two worlds really was the best outcome.
"I'm not digging up the past." Hermione rolled her eyes. "Just getting even."
Daphne huffed, dropped her lamb chop, and lunged at her with greasy hands. Hermione shrieked and bolted, the garden soon echoing with their laughter and scuffles.
Watching them, Tom realized half of his main dream was already complete. All he needed now was to become unbeatable, and then he could enjoy life without a care.
...
The Greengrass sisters had practically moved in. Hermione too spent most of her days here, only heading home at night since her house was so close that skipping it entirely would seem strange.
During the day, when Tom was busy, the girls worked on their homework or went shopping. They always came back loaded with bags, piling them high on the oversized coffee table.
Astoria adored clothes. Daphne, on the other hand, bought anything she found interesting.
When Tom saw the odd hookahs she'd hauled back, he just stayed silent. But then he noticed the row of… trash cans on the floor.
"Daphne… what exactly is so special about these trash bins?"
"Hmm?" She blinked, then proudly pointed at them. "Nothing special. I just thought they'd be perfect for holding potion scraps. I'm going to wrap them up and give them to Professor Snape for Christmas."
Tom chuckled, ruffling her hair. "Brilliant idea. You three have fun here. I'm heading out—one of my Muggle friends is back for the holidays, and I want to see him."
"Will you be back for dinner?" Astoria asked.
"I'll eat with him and come back after. Don't wait up."
"Then go on, but don't be late," she said with a smile.
Daphne dashed upstairs, hugging her trash can, already planning how to wrap Snape's "gift."
Tom couldn't help but grin. He was dying to see Snape's face when he opened it. With a soft crack, he vanished from the garden.
...
He reappeared near the orphanage. A few new kids had shown up since his last visit, but Tom didn't bother with introductions. He just grabbed Seth and took him to the McDonald's nearby.
Tom had told the orphanage staff he was staying with a classmate, which explained his absence. Seth was disappointed they couldn't live together anymore, but he was genuinely happy that his bro had made friends.
And thanks to Tom's earlier "boosts," Seth's boxing career was shaping up nicely. He'd started entering youth tournaments and even taken home a few trophies. Maybe one day he would be the next Mohamed Ali.
Tonight, Tom planned to give him one last gift—the fresh blood of a Graphorn—to strengthen him further. After that, Seth's future would be entirely his own. As childhood friends, Tom felt he'd done enough.
...
After two hours of eating burgers and playing arcade games, the boys finally parted ways.
But Tom didn't head home just yet. Instead, he stopped by a Diagon Alley café.
Inside, a black-haired girl sat by the window with a cup of coffee and a newspaper.
Tom slid into the seat across from her. She looked up in surprise, then relaxed when she saw him.
"Sorry I'm late, Cho," Tom said sheepishly.
She gave a gentle smile and shook her head. "You're not late. I just got here early. It isn't even time yet."
---
Just meeting a muggle friend, he said before?
Well... technically, he hadn't lied to Astoria. He really had eaten with Seth.
He just hadn't mentioned the second half of his evening plans.
.
.
.
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